YS Jagan Murder Attempt: Police Claim Srinivas Hatched Conspiracy

Visakhapatnam: Visakhapatnam police commissioner Mahesh Chandra Laddha told media persons here on Wednesday that the murder attempt on Leader of the Opposition in Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly at Visakhapatnam airport on October 25, 2018 was a pre-meditated attack. He added that the accused, Srinivas had earlier drawn up an elaborate conspiracy to carry out his murderous plan on two previous occasions.

Laddha stated that the accused had started preparing for putting his devious plot into action from December 2017 and had planned to stage his attack on the YSR Congress party chief on October 18, 2018. However, he could not execute his plan on that day since YS Jagan Mohan Reddy left Visakhapatnam the previous day itself.

Srinivas had in the past worked as a welder, baker and cook, the police official said. Laddha added that he joined Fusion Foods at Visakhapatnam airport through a friend he knew from his work experience in Karnataka, Venkatapathi.

The Vizag police commissioner revealed that 92 witnesses had been questioned so far under Section 164 of Cr. pc and statements recorded.

Laddha said that the latter alleged to have been found in Srinivas' pocket, was was written by a woman, Vijaya Durga at his behest, earlier. She had also got it photocopied, he said. According to the Vizag police commissioner, Srinivas had called up two women, Shaik Ammaji and Hemalatha on the previous day and told them that he would make news which would be telecast widely on TV the next day. Srinivas carried out his murder attempt on October 25 in the VIP lounge of the airport as per his plan, the police official said. He also stated that Srinivas was the sole accused in the case.

However, senior YSRCP leaders including legal cell president, P. Sudhakar Reddy said that the case should be investigated by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under section 3-A in The Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation Act, 1982. He pointed out that the airport area fell under the purview of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and should be probed by the NIA. He added that the state police was deliberately ignoring the conspiracy angle in the case.

Sudhakar Reddy stated that the AP government was involved in the murder attempt on the YSRCP chief and wondered why the owner of Fusion Foods, Harshavardhan Chowdary had not been thoroughly interrogated.